In states that expanded Medicaid under the ACA, community health centers are more likely to be financially stable, provide medication-assisted treatment to opioid-addicted patients, offer behavioral health services and coordinate care with social service providers, compared to their counterparts in nonexpansion states, according to a new Commonwealth Fund study.
For the study, researchers used data from the Commonwealth Fund 2018 National Survey of Federally Qualified Health Centers to compare community health centers in expansion and nonexpansion states.
The U.S. has more than 1,300 federally qualified health center organizations which provide free or discounted care to low-income and uninsured people at more than 11,000 sites.
Six study findings:
1. Researchers found that 69 percent of community health centers in expansion states reported that their financial stability has much improved or improved since the ACA was passed in 2010. This compares to 41 percent of community health centers in nonexpansion states.
2. Seventy-six percent of community health centers in expansion states also said their ability to provide affordable care to more patients has much improved or improved since the ACA passed, compared to 52 percent in nonexpansion states.
3. Researchers found that community health centers in expansion states were more likely than their counterparts in nonexpansion states to report that they usually or often offer short-term counseling, treatment for substance-use disorder, and medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction for patients with emotional or behavioral health needs.
4. Forty-four percent of community health centers in expansion states reported they usually or often offer medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction, compared to 25 percent in nonexpansion states.
5. Researchers found that community health centers in expansion states were more likely to coordinate patient care with social service providers (58 percent vs. 48 percent) than health centers in nonexpansion states.
6. Community health centers in expansion states were more likely than their counterparts in nonexpansion states to report unfilled job openings for mental health professionals (73 percent vs. 64 percent) and social service providers (45 percent vs. 36 percent), according to the study.
Access the findings here.
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